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colt scopes for AR15s & M16s

mrfoxmrfox Member Posts: 23 ✭✭
edited June 2003 in Ask the Experts
I'm bidding on a Colt 4x20 compact AR15 rifle scope.
It appears NIB and it is going for $219.00, how old are they? and who made them for Colt? Are they dependable?
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Comments

  • ItGoBangItGoBang Member Posts: 1,529 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    They don't make them any more.. Stopped about 20 years back I think. All were made in Japan, Good scope, But make sure it is not a cheap copy. You can get a look alike for under $40.00.If you can get a real Colt scope for that price, It's a very good deal. The real Colt scope came in a 2 piece box with the Colt logo and the horse on it. And I think some of the scopes were a 10x20 too....[:)]

    It will hurt you, More than it will hurt me..

    Life Member... N R A
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  • He DogHe Dog Member Posts: 51,593 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Colt made scopes from 1959 to 1973. The AR15 Scope was made from 1963-1972, and is valued at $150-$250 depending upon condition and completness of box and materials.

    My heros have always killed cowboys.
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  • ItGoBangItGoBang Member Posts: 1,529 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    HE DOG, I was only off on the date 10 years [^] You seem to know a lot about them, Did they ever make then in Green? Someone said he saw one new in the box that was green...

    It will hurt you, More than it will hurt me..

    Life Member... N R A
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  • mark christianmark christian Member Posts: 24,443 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    $219 seems like a fair price for a NIB example. Dale is on the money with his dates for the Colt scopes, but It Go Bang is not exactly wrong either. Although Colt discontinued the 3X scope in around 1973, the scope reamained in production without the Colt name and logo. Colt still listed the scope as an available option for the AR-15 into the early 1980's and then began to market a 3X9 green armoured scope. Armalite offered the 3X scope for their AR-180 rifle, although this used a totally different mounting system than the AR-15. When Colt discontinued their branded 3X scopes I think the MSRP was $70. I can't remember the exact name of the Japanese optical firm who produced these scopes, but I beleive they were the same firm who were manufacturing optics for Bushnell during that same time period. The last year or so of production saw the introduction of a 4X version of the scope but by then the MSRP had risen to somewhere around $375. The mid 1980's were an interesting point in the USA economy; the European currencys were in sharp decline against the dollar (remember $600 HK-91's?) while the Yen remained very strong. At the time the 4X Japanese "Colt" scope was selling for $370 I was able to purchase a 4X Steiner from West Germany for just a bit more money...the choice was clear on that purchase!

    Now is my chance to bore everyone to death with some early AR-15 history (one of my favorite subjects other than M1 Garands). The first telescopic sights offered for the AR-15 rifles came from the Dutch optical firm Delft. These were 3x25mm fixed power scopes (actually 3.5 power) which mounted to the top of the carry handle in a manner simular to what we see today except it iused a spring catch and not the hole in the handle. The Delft scope was rather large, running the full length of the carry handle and weighing 340 grams. Although originally intended for the Armalite AR-10 rifle, Colt adapted the Delft to the AR-15 when they purchased the production rights from Armalite and created the screw type mounting system for the carry handle. Inside Colt this scope was known as the TTL-80. It had no turret adjustment knobs, but instead it used two knurled rings; the front ring at the objective lens adjusted the windage using a 0 to 5 scale. The rear ring adjusted elevation and was set for ranges of 100 to 800 meters. There were two different finishes available on these TTL-80 scopes; the first was a dull matt and the other was bright anodized. Either type used the same type of inverted post reticle.

    Colt continued to offer these Delft scopes until around 1963 when it became clear that the Dutch made units were simply too costly and sales were slow. Like everyone else back then, Colt looked to Japan and soon struck a deal to have a new smaller 3X scope produced which is the one we all know today. Interestingly the Delft scopes did not disappear and remained in service with the users of the Armalite AR-10 rifles. There is a fascinating photograph from jounalist Peter Wilke who went along on patrol with Portugese soldiers in Angola during the crisis there in the mid 1970's. One soldier's AR-10 clearly shows a Delft scope mounted on his AR-10 rifle. An actual use of an AR-10 Delft scope in combat was unthinkable before this photo came to light. You never see these Delft scopes around and the last time I even heard of one for sale was 20 years ago and the price then was well over $1000. Thats the end of the history lesson guys...you can all wake up now!

    Mark T. Christian
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  • ItGoBangItGoBang Member Posts: 1,529 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    WOW! Mark....... Thanks! That was good reading.[:)]

    It will hurt you, More than it will hurt me..

    Life Member... N R A
    American Legion, MECU, MWCA, SMSC, BSC, NASDS
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  • airborneairborne Member Posts: 1,728 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thanks Mark, you are indeed a wealth of knowledge on your topics of interest.

    "Tis better to be narrow and deep, than broad and shallow."

    BE QUICK - BE DEADLY!!!
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  • mrfoxmrfox Member Posts: 23 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Wow!

    Gents, thanks for the deep cache of knowledge on Colt scopes. I feel a lot more confident on the purchase.




    ________________________________________
    Keep your powder dry

    Keep your powder dry
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  • mrfoxmrfox Member Posts: 23 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Wow!

    Gents, thanks for the deep cache of knowledge on Colt scopes. I feel a lot more confident on the purchase.





    Keep your powder dry
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  • He DogHe Dog Member Posts: 51,593 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Yeah, Itgobang, what Mark said! I was using a book, he really knows.

    My heros have always killed cowboys.
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  • ItGoBangItGoBang Member Posts: 1,529 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I had one years back on an Colt SP1.. I sold the AR and scope for 450.00 thats when you could buy the AR's for 375.00 Wish I could still get them for that price [:D]

    It will hurt you, More than it will hurt me..

    Life Member... N R A
    American Legion, MECU, MWCA, SMSC, BSC, NASDS
    Thanks for all the help!
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